Equal and Opposite Reaction
by BananaBirdNova
Summary: My Star (OC) origin story! Yay! Will have random stuff that I think will help all of you get to know her the way I do. Set in a lot of different times and places, but since she hangs out in the Transformers universes so much I thought I'd just stick it under that. Don't murder me for it. By Nova.
1. Creation

A/N: WELL. Great time for my computer to crash, eh? (glares at faulty hardware) But! Finally got this up, the infamous intro to Star Nova. Well, I guess she's not Nova yet. She kind of picked that up in the Transformer's universes. Anyway!

It's not going to be Transformers for a bit, but that's necessary to explain her. Sorry about that. It'll get there, don't worry. You should know Star existed before I was a Transfan. She's been around as long as I've been writing, basically. I don't even really remember where she came from. She's just... _there_.

Also, Bananabird and I spent like an hour sorting out the first paragraph. Stupid existential ideas that only exist as concepts in my head! There's a few of those hanging around in here... such a bother to get down in words.

Anyway. More coming soon! I hope! Tell me what you think.

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><p>Every world imaginable exists within its own Universe, and every Universe exists as an entity of unimaginable age; conscious on a level of subtlety no mortal and very few deities could ever understand, and connected through a network of energies that is each Universe's awareness. Woven within and among them are powers of both Light and Dark, creation and destruction; powers that determine their existence and sentience, and that of the creatures within them. The balance between these energies relies on the unconscious manipulations of the beings they contain; the mortals, the gods, and the demi-gods. But the Universes themselves have no hand in this process.<p>

Thus there came a time when the Universes had a need. They needed a way to influence the Light and Darkness that existed within them; the good and the bad. For many ages these powers had been self-regulating, but with time the equilibrium had begun to shift, and not for the Light. The change was slow but steady, and the danger became very real. They needed a mediator.

And so they created a being; one lesser than them, but greater than all which existed in them, to keep their evil in check and maintain the balance. They shared him amongst each other, and it was given to him to have dominion over everything that was in them. He was their Voice and their Hands, giving them the power to directly influence the previously intangible forces that were the Light and the Dark. He filled their need and restored their balance with grace and ease, and in time the Darkness was restrained.

Then there was a time when this being they had created was not needed, and he was permitted to go where and do as he wished. His natural dominion gave him great wealth and power in the worlds and among the peoples of the Universes, and it was not long before he began to abuse this power.

This was unexpected, and the Universes were quick to realize their error in allowing him free reign, and then to realize their greater error; they had created this creature with no set boundaries or laws, and being virtually lawless granted them no power over him to punish, or halt, or command, and none whatsoever to destroy.

Almost the instant their creation understood the extent to which they could not control him, he ran wild with his power, doing anything to get what he wanted, and becoming what they had created him to tame. They had never encouraged him to grow, and so he remained as ignorant and as uncaring as a child to the pain and fear and malice that was left in his wake, where there were none with the ability to defend or deliver.

There was an attempt made to reason with him, and one of his firmest supporters eagerly undertook the task. The meeting did not go well, and their creation, driven mad with his power, swore that Universe's demise. He went to work immediately, and for them it was less than half an age before that Universe had grown cold and barren, lifeless within. He faded away beyond their reach and died as much as any of them could. Fear was not a natural thing for them, predator-less as they had previously been, but they learned it quickly.

And there was a time when the Universes again had a need.

After much deliberation, it was decided that a counterforce was needed. A second being was designed, equal to the first in many ways, but created with laws and restrictions that would govern it. Its purpose was to balance the evil caused by their first creation, to be the Light in the face of his Dark. This second child was created, carefully and with great caution. The laws they set for her were written in the very fabric of the energy they created her with, along with the simple yet potent resonance between her life and his. They were to be a pair, and she would change him; purify his corruption and bring him back to his purpose.

This they did not tell her.

She was told to be a guide and a director to the Light and Good within them. It was not so simple or easy for her, as it had been for the first. She was left to her own designs to make things right, and because of this she learned quickly and well. She grew to truly care about the creatures she assisted. They came to be family to her. The power of her emotions and connections heightened what she could do for good, gave her more power than the Universes had intended. But because of the laws they had set, she remained under control. She remained pure and uncorrupted by this power, doing only good continually within her creators.

They did not warn her of their first child, but the day of their meeting was looked to with great anticipation and hope. It was not very long in coming; he could sense this new being, and she intrigued him. Their first meeting was everything the Universes expected it to be. He was entranced by her. She was a wild force of nature he had never encountered before, intoxicating and free with an indomitable spirit and a heart open and waiting to receive him. They fell in love and came to care for each other very much, and the Universes were pleased. The two beings balanced each other well and they could see their first creation rising up out of his Darkness to stand in the Light.

But they had misjudged the Evil and the filth that he had become. His perversion ran much deeper than they had detected, and perhaps, if she had been warned of that, much grief could have been prevented. But she was ignorant and naïve and blinded by her love. It made the betrayal unexpected. It made her pain eternal.

He tried to catch her and hold her. He tried to take her and bend her to his will, make her a slave as he had done with every other creature he came in contact with, and put her in a cage to admire like a trophy. He tried, but she resisted, and he could not force it upon her as he could lesser creatures. He could not keep her and he could not destroy her, as he would have when she refused him, but he could hurt her. And he did. He burned her with a flame that could not be quenched, scarring her deeper than anybody else ever could have, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. This was a cause of much concern to the Universes, but, as with everything else he did, there was nothing they could do.

And so their daughter burned, inside and out, and they could only watch as she struggled through the pain and came out cold and hard; knowing how deeply one could feel for another, having a great capacity for pain of any variety, and understanding that the easiest and most effective way to not have to deal with that pain was simply to not feel at all.

She was lost to them for a very long while, even to their standards of time.

But then their first child returned to her and in an instant that shattered across the Universe they occupied, her apathy and ice exploded into hate. She was strong enough to drag him before the Universes' council, and was infuriated when they would do nothing to punish him. She wanted him destroyed and would not believe that they had not the capacity to do so.

While she was distracted he forced his way into a Universe and hid himself from her. When they explained why they had no power over him, she was suddenly calm, but remote and stony. She could see past their half-truths. She had honed that skill among the political fields of the mortals. She knew and understood now, what her purpose had been.

That was where the cold war between the Universes and their second creation had begun. She could not be wild as he who had gone before her because of the laws she was bound with, and she continued to do her duties as a mediator within them with the same amount of care to detail, though her actions lacked the small warmth they had still held up to that point. There was a rift between her and everything else. It was intangible and unseen, but it yawned wide to every Universe who cared to notice.

Many of them fear it will never be closed. They may very well be right. Some of them are hopeful that time will bring her back. And still others stay quiet as they communicate amongst themselves the fact that it doesn't matter. She will continue to do her job and contain the Darkness; they had created her with no option but to.

And in the end, that was all that mattered.


	2. Burned

A/N: Apparently this thing needs some context, so here it is. Ҫoradon's Universe was pretty much Star's first job. It was her training ground of sorts, and Ҫoradon (pronounced Sore-addon) was where she spent the majority of her time, and where this takes place. At this point in time it's futuristic with a touch of magic thrown in. They're pretty much the hub of the universe, where all the political leaders of the worlds meet and stuff (think like in Star Wars, um, third movie was it?). This is backing up from the end of the last chapter, back to the first event that changed the course of Star's life. Corintha was a prominent political worker that helped Star out a lot, and they turned into best friends. Liam's another good friend. And... I think that's what you need to know. Carry on!

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><p>It was Corintha who found Star the next day. She looked so fragile, curled up on the floor. The bright red burns that scaled her chest, neck, and face were terrifying, and still hot, as if her skin was still on fire. Corintha knew what had happened, and cursed the creature that had done it with the worst cursing she had ever given. Her anger was internal as well, though. She had seen this coming. If she had tried harder, could she have prevented it? She did not know.<p>

But the damage was now done, and it was too late. Corintha could not undo this hurt. She could only care for her best friend and pray to her Creators that she could make it through.

Corintha took her and dressed her burns carefully, aware that her healing powers had no place with this injury, and that it would take a very long time before the pain would go away. She waited by the bedside, only leaving for short periods of time, and told no one what had happened. She knew Liam had guessed from his lack of curiosity towards the subject. He had seen the signs as well. The same question of 'what more could I have done?' was in his eyes, but there wasn't anything. They were mortals. She was not. They couldn't protect her from one of her own.

For many days she stayed still, never moving, hardly breathing, as Corintha cared for her. The burning stayed with her, just as hot as the moment the fire had touched her. It never went away.

The scariest moment for Corintha, though, was when _he_ came back; the one who had burned her. He came at night, in darkness, just as Corintha was preparing to rest herself. She was angry. She yelled at him. She stood between him and the one he had scarred, and would not let him see her. There was nothing she could have done to protect herself, had he attacked, but she stood in the way nonetheless, and told him exactly what she thought of him.

She knew a time when he would have punished her for it. Maybe even killed her for it.

But this time was different. Miraculously, he left without ever raising his voice or a finger to harm. Corintha waited for him to come back, to be angry. She calmed her shaking and didn't rest that night, or the next day, or the next night, until exhaustion drove her to sleep. He never came back.

And still Corintha waited for Star to heal.

It was midmorning, after three weeks of waiting, when she woke for the first time. Corintha could see the confusion in her eyes. It only lasted a couple seconds before the pain and the loss took over. Corintha didn't say anything. There was nothing she could say. There was nothing she could do to comfort her as she broke down, shattering in front of Corintha's eyes, and silently cried. She cried for the next few hours until she fell asleep again, and she cried when she woke up the next day, and the next day, and the next. She didn't eat, she didn't speak, she didn't move. She only cried.

Corintha would remember forever how Star's tears would evaporate when they touched her burns. She never forgot how destroyed she was when she lost her first love. She never forgot how he had killed her inside. She never told anybody what had happened. She never forgave him. And she never stopped caring for her friend.

It was the same thing every day for months. Star would wake up and silently cry until she fell asleep again. Corintha would talk to her every once in a while, but she never answered. She was in a separate state of existence—here, but not really here. Stuck in her own world of pain. Corintha would dress her burns when she fell asleep again. She had to wait longer every day. But the fire never left. It never even cooled a single degree.

When she would stay awake all day, things changed a little bit. She still cried, she still burned, but she would get up and look out the windows instead of lying in bed. It wasn't much, but it was a start, and Corintha had some hope for her. She didn't talk or eat, and she wouldn't let Corintha redress her burns, but she got up.

Things slowly improved after that. Corintha would talk, and Star would listen. She would even answer yes or no questions, sometimes. She still spent the majority of her time at the windows, staring out, alone, crying, silently burning. She still didn't eat. She wouldn't let Corintha take care of her burns, instead choosing to leave them uncovered, but then she started trying to heal them herself. It was a good sign of recovery. Corintha thought maybe she was stabilizing. She was worried Star would have a relapse when it didn't work, but the immortal merely retired to her room and was up the next morning, at the windows again, as if nothing had happened.

Corintha could almost see what was going on inside Star as she recovered, and she was afraid of it. She was afraid of the ice she was using on the burn. She was afraid of the doors she was closing to hide from the pain. She worried that what would come out of the tragedy would be someone different from her best friend, someone she didn't know. Something that wasn't Star. But she could only wait and see.

Corintha woke up as she usual did that morning. She got up, dressed, and went to the kitchen to get breakfast. She glanced through the door to the wall of windows, where she could usually see Star at this time of morning. She wasn't there.

This felt wrong to Corintha, so she went to find her, and felt a moment of concern when she found Star still in bed. But something had changed. Something was different. She was awake…

But she wasn't crying.

Corintha approached the situation cautiously, sitting down beside the bed and waiting. Nothing happened for several seconds. Star remained staring at the roof with her hands behind her head, looking oddly relaxed and … untouchable. Like nothing could hurt her.

She blinked, took in a breath, and said the longest sentence she had uttered since the day before Corintha had found her on the floor.

"He never loved me, did he?" Corintha thought about her meeting with him and hesitantly voiced her interpretation of it.

"I think he did. I think the problem is that he doesn't love you enough."

Star turned to look at her, and her eyes were a steel grey, contrasting with the summer sky blue they had once been and the heavy, cloud grey they had been the last few months. Corintha almost held her breath waiting for her to say something.

"It doesn't matter any more. I don't love him."

"No." Corintha shook her head. After a moment of silence she reached out to touch Star's neck where the burn had been the hottest. "The heat has left your skin. That is good."

"I was tired of the pain, so I made it go away." Star explained, her expression never changing, her voice emotionless. "And I was tired of crying, so I stopped. I think I'm done now. For good."

Corintha stared at her best friend for several seconds. This was what she had been afraid of. Star had locked her heart away in a safe and turned her emotions to stone. She didn't feel anything any more.

Because if she never got attached to anything, if she never cared, she would never get hurt again. It was the logical thing to do. Corintha could see that very plainly, and it made her heart ache.

She abruptly burst into tears, losing the calm she had held on to for the last few months, and Star just stared at her, mildly surprised. It didn't hurt her any more, to see Corintha in pain, but she remembered when it had and it bothered her that she didn't feel anything at all. She reached out and took Corintha's hand.

"I am sorry." She said. But they both knew it was too late.

She couldn't turn back now.

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><p>AN (yes another one) He Who Has Not Been Named will be named... eventually... and you'll even get some of his perspective... eventually. Promise!

Now, on to T'reth!


	3. T'reth

A/N Alright, moving along with Star's life, this is the beginning of the end of that period where she just didn't feel anything and really didn't care about the stupid mortals and their stupid issues. It was a really long, really boring chunk of time where she worked in the background and didn't have a lot of direct contact with the mortals, unless one called to her directly. There's going to be a lot of skipping through this story line, but the big things will be here. Just know that T'reth was her tipping point.

In other news, the world is more medieval, magic again, and the Royalists are the oppressive, wealthy, uh, royalty. T'reth was born Royalist and Ackala was his house slave, but they're just about the same age and they ended up being best friends instead. When they got older Ackala functioned more as a body guard (mostly self-appointed) and his temper made it so that when the day came that a couple of young men from rivaling families ganged up on T'reth when he was alone and Ackala caught them beating the crap out of his best friend he ended up killing one of them. The punishment when a slave kills a Royalist is death, no exceptions. T'reth wouldn't stand for that, though, so he broke Ackala out of the dungeon and the two of them headed for the hills. T'reth was, you might have guessed, a slave sympathizer, and so after a bit of just wandering around they up and decided to lead a revolution with the hopes that T'reth's knowledge and natural leading ability would give them an advantage nobody else had had before them. They were right.

This is a good way into the movement, when they're starting to pick up speed and gain some people and small victories. Gree showed up a while ago, the only survivor of a farming community riot. His people were holding their own for a few days, until the Royalists sent in their sorcerers. He saw things that day that left him half mad for a few years, but he's pretty stable now. T'reth sort of took him in and started teaching him how to lead and appointed him third in command in hopes that he would step up to the responsibility, and he has. Anyway. I think that just about explains it. But look for these backgrounds in the author's notes. I don't have the mental material or patience to get this all down in story form now (maybe later), so you'll just have to take it like this.

UGH moving on to the actual story.

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><p>A bell clinked against the door as the three of them entered the tiny, dimly lit shack. The air was thick with incense smoke, and it seemed larger on the inside than it had looked outside. Maybe it was because the shack was stuffed to bursting with odd, curious items; objects made even more mysterious in the flickering oil light that shrouded them in dancing shadows. Gree stifled a cough as Ackala picked a way through the maze. There was an eerily heavy atmosphere in the old dwelling, causing all of them to glance warily into the dark corners and walk quietly, trying to not break the stillness.<p>

"Hello?" Ackala called in an uncharacteristically subdued voice. "Anybody ho—" he abruptly jumped back with a grunt into T'reth as something moved in front of him, and they both teetered off balance for a moment, surrounded by breakable-looking objects with nowhere to go. Gree reached forward to steady them as a small, dark-skinned, heavily bejeweled woman stepped into the lamplight. She was as odd as the things packed into her house, adornments glinting like stars against her black skin in the lamplight. Her deep brown eyes seemed to absorb the same light and returned nothing for its effort and her clothes—or what of them that could be seen beneath her jewelry—were iridescent, shimmering three or four different colors as she moved. She was mesmerizing.

"Um…" Ackala tried to articulate. There were several seconds of awkward silence as the three men stared at the woman and she stared expectantly back.

T'reth cleared his throat, first to recover. "Are you Ӕparra?" He asked, leaning around Ackala to study the strange woman. She certainly _looked_ the part of a mystic.

Her eyes caught his gaze and held him entranced for what felt like a very long moment, pupils rapidly dilating and seeming to pull him away from himself, out into the open where she could _see_ him and inspect what she saw.

"Yes." She blinked and the spell was broken, leaving T'reth feeling slightly light-headed. "I am de one dey call Ӕparra." Her voice was rich and deeper than he would have expected for one her size, and he had never heard an accent like hers before.

"Oh." T'reth shook his head to dispel the last of the hypnotized feeling. "That's good. I'm…"

He trailed off as she sharply lifted a hand to silence him, bracelets clinking and fabric rustling silkily. "I know who you are. And I know who you seek." She made a vague gesture for them to follow and turned to gracefully weave her way through the piles of stuff. Ackala glanced back at T'reth questioningly and he motioned for him to go on.

"I don't like this, T'reth. She creeps me out—this whole place creeps me out." Gree nervously confided. "Are you sure this is safe?"

"Nothing's safe anymore, Gree. That's why we carry these." He patted his sword hilt. "That's why we're here. If even half of what we've heard about this creature is true, then we need her help, and you heard the locals. Ӕparra knows if anybody does." Gree didn't look very reassured, so T'reth paused to put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, friend. If anything happens, the three of us can fight our way out of it." He turned to catch up to Ackala and Gree reluctantly followed.

"Some things can't be killed with steel." He muttered.

They passed through a low doorway with glass beads strung over it, stooping so they wouldn't hit their heads, and entered a brighter, more open but smaller room. There was a low table in the center, placed on a woven mat, that Ӕparra had seated herself behind. "Sit." She gestured at their side of the table and after a moment of hesitation Ackala cautiously complied, crossing his legs and pushing his sword hilt out of the way. He didn't let go once he was seated.

T'reth and Gree quickly followed suite, and then there was a moment of awkward silence. Ӕparra had taken a meditative pose and closed her eyes, still as a statue. She didn't look like she was going to come out of it anytime soon, either. T'reth was just about to say something when she did, opening eyes that were a much lighter color than they had been a moment ago.

"She calls herself Star." Ӕparra stated.

"Yes, we heard that." T'reth nodded. "Can you—"

She lifted her hand commandingly to stop him again. "Do not interrupt." She ordered. T'reth blinked in surprise, but subsided. "She is a being of Light; immortal. Created to balance good and evil. When she find a people to fight for, she is more dangerous than any weapon man can make wid his steel."

The three of them listened closely, intrigued as much by her voice as by the information she was giving them.

"She fight like wild cat, wid untamable fury until her enemy is in her grip, and den she hold dem like snake until der is no life left in dem."

Ackala leaned back, raising his eyebrows. "Well. She sounds like our kind of girl." T'reth would have agreed, but Ӕparra's mood suddenly shifted. Her dark features pinched together and a bronze gleam coated her deep brown iris' in anger.

"No. She is nobody's girl." Her eyes narrowed, but she wasn't glaring at Ackala. She was directing her anger at T'reth. "Her heart was destroyed long ago, she feel nothing now. She help only because she must. Don't think oderwise." Her eyes bored into T'reth as if she wanted to set him on fire.

Ackala was a bit taken aback. "Okay… good to know…"

"Do you, uh, know how we could find her? We really need her help." T'reth tried to change the subject and was relieved when the mystic settled, almost like a porcupine relaxing its quills. But she still had that hard look in her eyes and addressed herself only to T'reth.

"She is difficult to find, sometime here, sometime dere, sometime nowhere."

"You mean you don't know?" Ackala demanded incredulously. "Then what are we even doing here?"

"I am not her master." Ӕparra snapped, glaring and bristling again without taking her eyes from T'reth's. "I cannot tell her where and when to go."

"Patience, Ackala." T'reth murmured, reaching up to put a hand on his friend's shoulder, restraining him. "Please, go on." He encouraged Ӕparra.

"If you wish to find her, you must think her to you. But you must be sure you want _her_ to find _you_. If she come and decide she do not like you, she may not spare you. If you want her to fight for you, you must show her dat your cause is just and your enemy's not. If you think you can do dat, den you have a chance. If not, den to call her to you would be to die."

Gree shrank down, not liking the sound of this at all. Even Ackala was suddenly a bit unsure.

"Thank you, Ӕparra. Come on, let's go."

Gree was out the door before the words were off T'reth's lips, and Ackala was not far behind.

"T'reth," Ӕparra said softly before he could follow, and he paused to turn back. She was still sitting at the table, and when she looked up at him her eyes had lightened to a golden hazel.

"You must be very careful if you do not wish to die." She warned.

He nodded, and then slipped through the beads after his men.

"And you must be even more careful if you do not wish to destroy her again." She added in a whisper, pulling a large, pure white feather out of the air and setting it on the table. "Child of de Sun."


	4. Good Fortune

WOW. WOW, YOU GUYS. I just realized that I totally screwed up here and only posted half of the chapter. wow. Just... total fail right there.

But I fixed it. It'll make more sense now, promise...

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><p><em>CHUNK<em>

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

Think her to you. That had been the only way Ӕparra knew how to find this being called Star. T'reth set another piece of tree trunk on the chopping block and hefted the axe onto his shoulder.

But how did you think someone to you?

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

The log split and T'reth set it back up to split it into a few more pieces. The simple labor helped him think. It took away the distraction of the army he was trying to lead, and the war he was trying to win. It helped him imagine for a bit that he didn't have a war to fight at all.

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

Ӕparra hadn't said anything about sorcery being involved, and he had asked several of their mages and a few of the other men who were magically inclined about it, but none of them had been quite sure what she had meant, either.

_CHUNK_

And then of course there was the issue of being ready for this immortal to find him and then convince her to help, or else die on the spot. In the four weeks since they had seen the mystic he and Ackala had had several arguments about that little aspect of the process. Diplomacy was T'reth's specialty, but his best friend was not quick to trust and always concerned about his welfare. It was aggravating at times, but Ackala did have more experience with the harm that sorcery could cause than he did. This creature, Star, was dangerous.

But wasn't that what they needed right now?

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

He had prepared his argument well and gone over it enough times that he was pretty sure he was ready to appeal to the immortal. All he needed to do now was find her.

Think her to you.

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

Think her to you.

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

_Think her to you._

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

_CHUNK_

_Think…_

Light exploded in front of T'reth and a blast of hot air hit him like a wall, interrupting his swing and throwing him to the ground. He scrambled to his feet and took a defensive stance, trying to shield his eyes and see at the same time. The wind pushed against him, bending the grass of the field and roaring through the nearby trees, making him stumble. He dropped his arm to catch himself, and as he dared to look at the source of the light it immediately seemed to tone down so he could see through it without searing his eyes.

All fell quiet the instant he saw her. She was floating a good ten feet off the ground, wings spread wide, tall, thin form poised with an air of fearless power. Pointed ears poked through long, white hair that fluttered in what was left of the wind that had knocked T'reth to his knees. Her face was angular and sharp and pale and he would have said she was beautiful in a peculiarly dangerous way if it weren't for her eyes. He had never seen anything more strange and terrifying as she stared at him with eyes that had no irises or pupils, but seemed to be orbs of pure, liquid silver. They swirled with dark and light bands, unfathomable and unnatural, and no matter how he tried he couldn't look away.

"_Speak your piece, T'reth of the Sun Clan._" She ordered, and her voice was the wind, speaking directly to his mind, and suddenly his careful argument was completely forgotten and he was left to stare blankly at the goddess before him.

"_Speak_." She demanded again, fiery impatience impressing itself on his mind.

He could feel his opportunity slipping away from him and a dangerous energy gathering around the immortal, and with his prepared words still nowhere to be found, T'reth simply spoke the truth.

"We would have your assistance." He almost blurted, and then braced himself.

The creature blinked slowly, calmly. "_That was the purpose of calling me_." She said, making the fully grown man feel like an ignorant five year old asking obvious questions. "_For what cause and to what point?_"

"For the cause and point of freedom." T'reth answered, slowly getting to his feet, still incapable of looking away from her eerie gaze.

"_To and from whom?_"

"To the good people of the land." He gestured back at the camp, just a little ways off veiled by a stand of trees. "From the Royalist nation."

The immortal's wings shifted position, drawing back a bit. "_You are of Royalist birth._" She stated.

A cold feeling swept through T'reth. She knew his heritage, but of course she did. She was a Goddess. But then she would know all about who and why they fought, wouldn't she? Why ask?

"I am." He agreed quietly. "And I believe we are wrong to be doing what we are. They are no different from us. What makes them slaves and us nobles?"

"T'reth?!" A familiar voice called from the direction of the camp. He felt the need to look and warn Ackala from interfering in this critical meeting, but her impossible eyes still held him and he couldn't do any more than lift an arm and wave his friend away.

Ackala wasn't ever one for taking orders against his better judgment, though, and the next thing T'reth knew the larger man was in front of him, swords lifted defensively.

"Away from him, Demon." his friend growled, and as the creature turned her attention away from him with a slight tilt of her head T'reth was free to move again and he lurched forward to push Ackala's arms down.

"Stand down, you're jeopardizing the situation!" he hissed desperately, sensing the energy of the wind and light growing dangerous again.

"And you're jeopardizing your life!" Ackala hissed back accusingly, and T'reth was the only mortal alive that could hear the fear in his friend. He was terrified beyond words of the Goddess standing in the air above them. But he was more afraid of what his world would be without his best friend.

"_What indeed._"

T'reth looked up just as the light increased to blinding intensity, but somehow he could still see Star wrap herself in the light and disappear into it with a flash, leaving the two mortals to blink away the dark spots in their vision and argue about the recklessness of the event.

~0~

When the meeting tent was empty of his officers again T'reth put his elbows on the table and dropped his head into his hands with a weary sigh, massaging his temples in an effort to ease his mounting headache. People were still joining in their resistance effort, but what had once been waves of support were now only trickles. The Royalists were pushing back, loading more oppression and punishment on the communities and towns still under their control. The people were afraid.

T'reth was, too.

It had been a little over two months since Star had come and gone. He had tried, once he had worked up the courage, to call her back and ask for her help a second time despite Ackala's protests, but she hadn't come. He still reserved some hope where the other officers had abandoned it that she would return and agree to assist them, but that hope was quickly dwindling, like a small candle running out of oil to burn. In the meantime, they couldn't sit around and wait for her. They continued to plan and work as if the immortal had never been, but there was only bad news and difficult decisions at the moment, and T'reth felt the weight of leadership on him all the time. Despite most of their number being farmers and manual laborers, food was an issue. They never stayed in one place long enough to plant crops, and moving any sort of supplies on the roads was out of the question; Royalist spies and checkpoints were everywhere. Obtaining weapons of any kind was a monumental challenge; they had few metal workers and even fewer ways to obtain raw materials for them to work with. Their greatest source of metal was farming and hunting tools, and once they had melted those down for swords and arrows they had none left for armor of any sort and not much for gathering food. The cycle was endless and troubling. T'reth knew that if they didn't get some sort of good fortune, and soon, the resistance was going to fall apart. And if they lost this opportunity and the momentum they had already gained, T'reth knew the Royalists would not be so easily surprised again. This was their chance, and it might be their only chance for a good long while. They could not afford to lose it.

Thinking about the situation wasn't getting his headache to lighten up, so T'reth sat up with another sigh, deciding that there were things he really ought to see to.

And then froze. And stared.

The Goddess at the other end of the table folded her wings a little closer to her back as she regarded him. Her face was smooth and emotionless, giving none of her thoughts away to the man. She blinked.

"It has been long since a Child of the Sun has called to me." She said out loud.

T'reth opened his mouth to ask about the unfamiliar title, but then decided he should probably keep quiet and wait to see if she was really here to help. Some part of his heart was dancing with renewed hope, but his mind hushed it, wary of the crushing disappointment that could result from it if the immortal refused to assist them.

"The last of the pure-bloods who did was unworthy." She stated calmly. "He didn't last through the initial plea before I destroyed him."

A chill settled in T'reth's gut again. For a moment he wondered if Ackala's inner ear was ringing wherever he was and wished he had the same mystical ability to sense danger the way his friend did. But then he realized that it would be pointless, anyway. There wasn't anything he could do to defend himself should the immortal decide to kill him.

The being in question tilted her head very slightly as she continued to stare him down with her silver-coated eyes. "But you are not like him, T'reth of the Sun Clan." She murmured. There was silence for a moment and T'reth wondered if he was supposed to reply, but then Star straightened, spreading her dark wings.

"I find your cause honorable T'reth, son of M'drand, worthy heir of the Sun's Light, and I will support it—and you, so long as you remain true to it—as far as I am able, according to my ability and power, on my own terms and in my own time. But know this, mortal," and the tent rippled as a hot breeze swelled through it, making T'reth blink rapidly. The Goddess spread her arms, light gathering about her as she rose several feet above the hard-packed earth, and her sharp features were set in a sever expression, the sort that you didn't argue with. "You have no power to command me, and you never will. Do not dare to think otherwise."

The human shook his head mutely and the immortal seemed to accept his response, settling back to the ground and folding her wings in again. "Good. Now that the formalities are out of the way, we can get to work. Continue to lead your army as you will. I won't tell you what to do, but I will offer council and help you do it."

She pulled a piece of paper seemingly out of thin air and dropped it on the tactical map on the table. T'reth identified it as a smaller version of their own map, labeled with several different colors of dots and lines. A small box in the corner gave meaning to the different marks and the General's jaw almost dropped as he recognized the symbol beside the red dot as the Royalist's seal. They were Royalist military camps, outposts, patrol and supply routes, armories; everything they had been trying to figure out was right there on that piece of paper. T'reth looked up to thank the Goddess, but she wasn't there anymore.

"Thank you." He said anyway, figuring that if she could hear a thought she would hear him say it. Then he snatched up the paper and hurried out to call another meeting with his officers.

This changed everything.


	5. Traitor

A/N: these two are set to music from the movie Defiance (which, btw, I own no part of), The Bielski Otriad for the first part and Bella and Zus for the second, by James Newton Howard (who rocks, fyi). I havent seen Defiance, but I like the soundtrack and it was very helpful for the T'reth story, along with the Inception soundtrack. (Hans Zimmer also rocks.) Music cues included with re-upload (because I could).

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><p>(Bielski Otriad 1:55) When the brilliant colors of the sunset had begun to fade they set out toward the Royalist camp. Their front line was spread out through the dense woods, minimizing the damage they caused to their cover, but not so far out that T'reth couldn't give orders. Usually circumstances would have demanded they travel slowly to keep quiet, but their winged immortal ally had assured them she could contain their sounds and neutralize the enemy's scouts. T'reth had trusted her at her word and so far they hadn't had a problem. They halted a short ways away from the enemy camp, much closer than they would have without Star there to keep them hidden, and T'reth sent out their scout to identify where most of the enemy was stationed at the moment.<p>

They waited, in the dark of the moonless night, for the scout to return. T'reth peered into the deep shadows of the trees, searching for the man he had sent and for the immortal they had chosen to put so much trust in with this attack. It was their first offensive strike ever. He had high hopes of it going well, but as time passed and the trees stirred in a quiet, otherworldly wind, the rebel leader could feel the cold fist of dread clenching around his heart. Something wasn't right.

Ackala was suddenly next to him, almost making him jump, and he was frowning. "It's been too long." He muttered to his friend and commander. "Keita should have reported back by now."

"He may have just been delayed." T'reth murmured back.

"Or been captured or killed. The Royalists could be surrounding us as we speak." Ackala argued, keeping his voice a hushed whisper.

(2:46) "Or worse."

That was all Star said as she stood up, appearing from the foliage like a shadow coming to life, and spread her wings to take to the skies. T'reth and Ackala exchanged a glance, not needing to see the details of the other's face to know that they were thinking the same thing. Ackala jumped up to run after the winged immortal, struggling to keep up and keep her in view, while T'reth turned to yell back to his third in command as loudly as he dared.

"Gree! Get the men back to camp as quickly as you can!"

And then he was running after Ackala.

They were almost at the crest of the small hill between them and the Royalist's camp when Star landed, crouching next to a tree for a moment before straightening and marching to the very top of the hill to look down into the wide clearing below. Ackala quickly replaced her by the tree and almost tripped over Keita's body. The unfortunate young man had a dagger in his back, and his body was cold enough to have been dead for most of the time they had been waiting for him to return.

Barking a few choice words under his breath, Ackala hurried to follow Star to the top of the hill, and after a regretful glance at Keita's body T'reth joined them to stare down into the empty valley. The torches were still there, set up around what had been the campsite up until at least this morning, but that was all that was left.

"You have a rat among your ranks." Star murmured distantly.

"By Lykotus, this is bad!" Ackala almost yelled, giving up with being quiet when there wasn't anyone to hide from anymore. "No wonder we haven't been getting anywhere!"

Ackala went off on a rant about bloody traitors while T'reth looked to Star apprehensively. "If they're not here, where are they?"

The immortal turned her head sharply away from her absent inspection of the clear sky to look East. (3:41) "Your camp."

T'reth sucked in a horrified breath as his worst fear was confirmed, but that was all he could do before Star reached out to grab his and Ackala's arm. The forest around them seemed to smear and warp before snapping back into focus, leaving both men slightly breathless and dizzy for a moment. Star was already gone by the time they realized where they were.

Their camp was just up ahead, even though they had been over a mile away a mere ten seconds ago, and it was lit far too brightly and there was far too much noise coming from it to be good. They stumbled forward, quickly finding their balance to run, and burst into the part of camp that was on a small hill to find it almost entirely on fire and completely overrun by enemy soldiers. Star was standing and staring at the scene only a few yards in front of them, apparently unconcerned.

"DO SOMETHING!" Ackala yelled at her. Her wings flicked back at them.

"I have and I am." She retorted quietly without turning, and somehow the roaring fire and yelling soldiers couldn't drown out her voice. "This camp was evacuated five minutes before they arrived. Your people are safe."

"What about the supplies?! The food, the water, the tents and clothes? They're destroying everything!" Ackala gestured wildly to what used to be their camp and strode toward the immortal. "Do something!" he demanded again. T'reth would have stopped him, but he was too shocked to move at the moment.

How could everything have gone so bad so fast?

Star turned to the advancing human, her silver eyes stopping him short. "Such things can and will be replaced. Be patient, mortal."

"That's a little hard to do while our camp is ON FIRE!" Ackala snapped back, not sufficiently warned off to stop yelling.

Star looked back at the sloped clearing, as if noticing for the first time that the whole area was, indeed, on fire. "You're people are traveling that way." She pointed off to the side, in the direction their evacuation plan should have taken them in an event such as this. "I suggest you join them."

"And what are you going to do?" Ackala demanded.

"Introduce myself to our enemy." The goddess explained shortly, spreading her wings. A hot wind swirled around her and whisked her into the dark sky, out of view almost instantly. Neither of them moved; shock rooting one and helpless anger rooting the other to the spot, and so, elevated at the top of the hill as they were, they had an excellent view of what happened next.

The forest beyond their camp suddenly began to bend in a howling wind, moving like a wave of air toward them, and a shadow swelled out of the protesting trees to block out the stars. The wind ripped through camp, sending the flames roaring higher and sparks flying before the shadow swept over the clearing and extinguished every source of light it touched. (5:08) Oppressive, heavy silence fell with it, stilling the air and all movement in the camp. The Royalist's mages lifted their staffs to light the darkness, but they were nothing more than small candles in the thick blackness that had settled in the clearing.

A sound like thunder rumbled through the air, and a crackling feeling that came after made the hair on their arms and the backs of their necks stand up. When the immortal spoke, the very earth beneath their feet seemed to vibrate with her tone.

"Listen now and listen well, soldiers of the Royalist people." She instructed. A fissure of light appeared above the trees on the far end of the clearing, where everybody could see, and it became Star, her stance very similar to how she had first appeared to T'reth, if a bit more aggressive. "I am Star. I am an ally to those whom you call rebels, and I am thus your enemy." She declared.

Four mages working in tandem pointed their staffs and uttered a curse. Their power lanced up at the immortal, only to strike an invisible wall and dissipate into the air around her harmlessly.

"I wasn't finished." She said flatly, disapproval in her voice. She made a slightly irritated gesture and a horrified shout went up from the enemy soldiers as those four mages collapsed, dead and cold before they'd even hit the ground. "As such I give you one warning; cease hostilities and find an agreement between your leader and theirs, or face me in battle and die."

There was a short, uneasy silence in the clearing before Star pulsed brighter, pointing commandingly toward the North, where the Royalist capitol city was. "Return to your leader with my message. Leave now under your own power, or I will remove you with mine."

The Royalist soldiers shifted, unsure, waiting for someone to give an order. Then an arrow from a crossbow arced up at the immortal and someone yelled, "ATTACK!"

The arrow vaporized, along with every arrow that followed, and the other three mages that followed the order had just as little luck harming Star as the four before them, and their fate was the same.

"So be it." Was all she said.

The hot, fierce wind returned as she lifted her arms, bending the trees as far as they would without snapping, picking up dust and whisking arrows away. The air pressure changed dramatically, as did the temperature, and within moments a tornado had formed around the immortal. It grew quickly to engulf almost the whole clearing, forcing T'reth and Ackala to retreat into the trees to find what little shelter they could, and then it moved off to the north with a mind of its own.

In its wake, the Rebel camp was as it had been before the tornado, but not a single Royalist soldier remained.

Ackala and T'reth emerged to study the remains of their camp silently, until Ackala glanced over at his friend.

"You know, I think I'm glad she's on our side."

T'reth nodded numbly. "We should find the families and start salvaging what we can. The Royalists no doubt moved their camp, and since they won't be needing it anymore we can restock from what they left behind. Gree should be back with the men soon."

Ackala nodded and set off in the direction Star had said the families of their soldiers had gone while T'reth wandered through the camp to find a torch and see more clearly what had been lost.

~0~

They found the Royalist's camp early the next day when T'reth looked at the small map Star had given him and realized it had changed again to mark the new positions of the enemy. The Royalist contingent had been larger than their own, and thus they found plenty of supplies, though not as many weapons as they would have liked. Once everyone had been set to the task of counting and writing down what they had, T'reth called his officers together to address the issue of the rat among the ranks. Only the officers had been told enough details of the attack to have been able to give the Royalists enough information to counter, unless they had routinely failed to notice an eavesdropper outside the tent. That was unlikely, though, since their guards would have noticed, and if it had been one of the guards themselves he wouldn't have been able to gather nearly enough information since they switched out guards every meeting.

It had to be an officer.

T'reth stared carefully around the table at the men he had chosen to help him lead. Next to him, Ackala also studied his fellow officers, but with a heated glare and obvious suspicion. Gree frowned around as well, knowing what they were looking for, but not knowing how to look for it.

Once their last officer joined them, T'reth started the meeting. "You all know why we're here. That attack last night was turned on our heads because someone in this tent told them it was coming. I want to know who and why."

The officers glanced uncertainly at each other, waiting for someone to speak up or for T'reth to start asking questions.

"Sir," one of the older men said quietly, and T'reth turned to him. "How can we be sure it wasn't that creature?"

T'reth frowned. "You think it was Star?"

"And how do we know it wasn't you?" another asked. Tiktuk had always been suspicious of T'reth's motivation, and he wasn't surprised by the narrow look the man was giving him. T'reth merely sighed a bit, but next to him Ackala bristled, growling dangerously. T'reth put a restraining hand on his shoulder before his friend could say something offensive and was about to reply to both concerns when Star herself did so for him.

"It was neither, I assure you."

Tension in the room skyrocketed as the immortal moved away from the entrance, letting the tent flap close behind her. The worried face of one of their guards, a young man, peered through before being blocked from the proceedings again. T'reth hoped they hadn't tried too hard to keep Star out. From what the leader could gather from her frosty expression, she wasn't in the best mood.

The stillness in the room was that of men ready for any sort of action—whether it was to fight or flee. Heads swiveled and eyes remained trained on the tall, thin form as Star deliberately took her time walking around the table, though if she met their gazes the officers were always the first to look away. She stopped at T'reth's right shoulder. "T'reth remains loyal to the cause, as do most of you. But not all of you."

T'reth felt the impulse to tense with the rest of the room at his vulnerable position, with the very dangerous being directly behind him, but he forced himself to relax. She had just reiterated that his position had not changed, and she had promised to uphold his command so long as that was the case. Ackala, on the other hand, was as taut as a pulled bowstring next to him, and half turned to keep the immortal in his field of view.

Star swept her unnatural eyes around the table again, daring each gaze she met to challenge her. None did. "I already know who the guilty party is. Now is your chance to speak."

There was silence in the tent for an unbearable minute, the officers shifting slightly and glancing at one another, waiting. Star didn't so much as twitch in all that time, and then abruptly turned to continue her way around the table, wings settling closer to her back. Her steps were light and measured, her hands were clasped behind her back, and if it had been almost anybody else it would have been normal, something like pacing to help her think. But it wasn't. It was with a predator's grace that she moved around the spacious meeting tent, sending the tense atmosphere to new heights of discomfort and making every man with their back to her cringe with instinctual fear.

"You were all chosen as officers for your ability to offer valuable insight in fighting and winning this war. The traitor is no different. Some of you even vouched for his skills. He has made himself a friend, a position that has served his purposes well. He has appeared willing to follow T'reth's command, and encouraged the rest of you to do the same. His suggestions have seemed useful, but were more so to him in allowing this trap and others to bear fruit. He has always been clever to hide his affiliation and contact with the Royalists, but he showed his hand without truly understanding the consequences of my support. Had he been smarter, he would already be gone rather than at this meeting, but he believed his position to still be secure."

Marcel, the officer to have expressed concern about Star's loyalties, was frowning as he pieced together the clues the winged woman was setting out for him. He was one of the oldest men there, but his mind and eyes were still sharper than most, as his skill with the longbow proved. T'reth could practically see the wheels turning in the other man's head even as his own mind worked hard to narrow down his options. Already he had eliminated several of his officers, but he still had about three he wasn't sure of. Star hadn't spared a glance at anybody since she had started circling, but she only paused her speech for a few moments before going on, voice dropping to a dangerously low murmur. "He went ahead of your army to warn the Royalists and waited for your scout in order to kill him. His scent was still on the body when I found it. His hand was imprinted on the blade he used."

There were several disconcerted frowns at that, but one of the three men T'reth was debating between suddenly paled, lifting his gaze to look at the immortal across the table from him as she came to a stop and faced him. T'reth felt disappointed, and more than a little angry. Erol had been a decent officer. He was usually quiet, but when he did speak T'reth was glad to listen to his ideas, and he had always carried out orders well. At least, T'reth thought that he had.

Heads turned as Star fell silent again, following her gaze to lock on to Erol as the man began to shake, eyes growing ever wider as the Goddess stared him down.

"Erol…" one of the officers next to him started, face falling. "Is this true?"

"I—" the traitor started, and then took a stuttering breath. "It was inevitable. You can't win; it's impossible. I was only serving my king."

"Anything else to say, traitor?" Star asked, steel in her voice.

Erol abruptly stood with a forced sneer, tipping his chair over backwards. "Not to you, Demon!"

It was surprising, how fast the man was almost to the exit before he suddenly stumbled, before anybody else could move. The rest of them were on their feet as the traitor made a choking noise, grabbing at his throat, and the whole group froze again, watching. Except for Star. Star slowly stalked closer to the man, posture the same as when she had paced around the table, terrifyingly predatory gait still in effect, dispassionate eyes locked onto the shaking mortal as if he were nothing more than an insect that needed to be squashed.

Erol collapsed, face turning blue, eyes bugging out in horror at the Goddess standing above him with not a hint of emotion anywhere on her person, and the next second his eyes rolled up into the back of his head and he was gone.

The officers remained rooted to their spots in shock as Star stepped over the body without another glance at it, pausing right in front of the tent flaps.

"I do not tolerate traitors." She glanced over her shoulder at them, completely unaffected by what she had just done. "Don't forget it."

And with that the immortal swept out of the tent and was gone.


	6. Mob

A/N: Only a couple weeks after Traitor... the events of that meeting were not made publicly known, only that there had been a traitor among them and that he had been dealt with.

Music cues included, goes to the Inception soundtrack song 528491 (wonderful song, hard name to remember, I do not own it just in case you were wondering.)

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><p>T'reth and Ackala came on the large gathering with confused frowns, and Gree pointed out the ring leader standing on a small platform with a torch, riling the crowd up with alarming ease. Something about someone lying to them and using them for his own agenda. The two of them left Gree and skirted the crowd to confront the slightly deranged-looking speaker. T'reth recognized him, but couldn't quite remember the man's name. Ackala had no such problem, luckily, and his bellow carried over the crowd easily once he decided they were close enough for a confrontation.<p>

"Liman, what in Lykotus' name are you doing?" the second in command demanded. Liman turned toward them with a start, eyes flickering in fear for a moment. He covered it up with a broad, on-the-edge grin.

"Speak of the devil!" he exclaimed. "If it isn't the man of the hour, our _honest_ and _self-righteous _leader!"

The crowd muttered angrily and both leaders had a sinking feeling as they continued forward. A covert glance at Ackala let T'reth know his friend's inner ear was starting to buzz, but the large man pressed on regardless.

"Liman, what lies have you been spreading?" Ackala growled, fists clenching. Liman jeered.

"No lies, mighty Ackala, only truths that you are very much aware of. Traitor!"

Ackala lurched forward at the accusation, ready to lay into the thin, weed-like merchant, but T'reth drug him back with some effort. The crowd's agitation jumped, but then calmed with T'reth's steady but dangerous words.

"Liman, explain yourself." He ordered. Liman's sneer was strained, and he straightened his merchant's clothes in a nervous habit.

"Gladly, oh noble T'reth. Both of you have been lying to us."

A hush fell over the crowd as they watched the scene play out. There wasn't even a breeze to stir the trees and tents as they waited for him to answer.

"How so?" T'reth wondered.

"Where were you born, T'reth?" Liman asked pointedly.

Ackala snorted violently. "Where he was born has nothing to do—"

"It has everything to do with this war!" Liman shrieked back, spitting in his enthusiasm. T'reth patted his friend's shoulder.

"It's alright, Ackala, I can handle this."

The look Ackala turned down on him and the way he clenched his jaw told him how much he doubted that, but he allowed his leader and friend to step up and confront the rabble-rouser on his own.

"I have never lied about my heritage. It has never been important until now, and it has only ever strengthened my determination to win this war with you. It shouldn't mean anything." He paused to take a breath. "I was born in Havenfield. My parents were Royalists."

The crowd erupted with outrage and T'reth raised his arms for their attention again, which was only marginally successful. "I was born and raised Royalist, it is true, but once I realized the error of their ways I left and have never looked back. According to them I am less than one of you for what I did, and I want to win our freedom as much as you do!"

"Liar!" Liman screeched, eyes shiny in the torchlight. "He's lying to us again!"

~0~

On a hill above the large camp, a shadow perched in a tree—something even the most skilled woodsmen would have overlooked or never noticed—suddenly came alive and shifted on the branch beside the trunk of the pine. Two orbs that were eyes reflected back the dim glow of fire as they focused on the tents below her, wings ruffling as her attention was caught. Deception, anger, fear, and impending violence were heavy in the air and she contemplated the sources and receivers of each emotion or action with a cold mind. No interference was necessary yet—it was debatable whether action was necessary at all, but it was an option available to her if she chose to act on it. All that really needed deciding was whether she cared enough to intervene, or if she was going to let the mortals have their way with each other and let them sort it out on their own.

Star determined to wait a while and see what would happen.

~0~

(528491) The crowd grew louder at the merchant's words, beginning to mill in agitation. T'reth tried to calm them with words of assurance, but they fell on deaf ears. When Ackala moved to be closer to his friend, tensing and grinding his jaw as the ringing in his ears grew steadily stronger, someone tried to pull him back. He automatically turned with a raised fist, but T'reth jumped to catch his arm.

"Don't!" the smaller man hissed. "You'll set them off."

Meanwhile, Liman yelled over all the noise. "He's in with the Royalists! He coordinated the attack on our defenseless women and children while we were 'ambushing' forces that didn't exist!"

The crowd that had become an angry mob roared back at the reminder of that event. The situation was rapidly deteriorating and T'reth quickly started searching for an escape for himself and Ackala, who was suddenly being wrestled to the ground by five other men. He needed to act soon.

At the back of the mob, Gree was momentarily frozen in panic at what was happening before he turned and disappeared around a tent. He needed to go get help, before it was too late… If it wasn't already too late.

~0~

In the tree above camp, the reflective orbs narrowed. This unrealized Child of the Sun—this T'reth. What was he to her? In a blink, she saw the outcome of these events if she did not act. He was not to die, neither of them were, but it would bring great grief and much pain to him. Nevertheless, he was only a mortal. He was nothing to her.

(0:49) So why did the situation put her on edge and push her into the grey area of indecision? Why could she not go back to her meditation and ignore him?

Why did he _mean_ something to her?

~0~

T'reth launched himself off the platform, plowing into Ackala's assailants, hoping to free him so they could fight their way out together. It was working for a moment and would have worked for longer if he had been willing to pull his sword on the mutinous men…but he couldn't. They were not the real enemy here.

The mob surged forward and he was overwhelmed before he could free Ackala. The first blow fell.

Star was on her feet in the tree, watching with eyes narrowed to slits, tense. Gree was coming with reinforcements, but T'reth would be a mess by the time they got there—Ackala too, but she couldn't really bring herself to care much about him. The bark of the tree crunched beneath her hand as she fought an internal battle. Why should she help? Because she cared about T'reth. But why did she care? She didn't know! She shouldn't and it made no sense. But the fact was that she did.

So what should she do?

The mob swarmed around the two leaders, yelling, screaming, beating on them with all their might. There was no sense to it, but there rarely ever is with frightened, angry men looking for someone to blame. Gree returned to the scene then, swords drawn and leading a contingent of loyal soldiers, and the young man couldn't help but stop and gape at the sight. Panic gripped him. What if he was too late? What if T'reth and Ackala were both already dead? What then? The other men and commanders rushed around him to attack the back end of the mob, but Gree found his gaze drawn to the sky.

_I find your cause honorable and I pledge myself to it. You will have my assistance in your fight._

That was what she had said when T'reth had introduced her to the officers. "Star?! Where are you? They need you! Help us!" He half-pleaded, half-commanded the empty air. There was a sudden rush of wind on his face, a soft sigh that brought a single word to his ear; _here._

Without warning, a wall of fire (2:03) exploded next to T'reth, throwing the mob back with just as much violence as they had been attacking with. It advanced, turning the grass to ash and charring the earth. A second wall wrapped around Ackala before anybody could react, pushing his assailants back, killing some instantly and terribly injuring others. A third wall covered their other side and left them on patches of green grass amidst the large black circle. The last explosion encircled them completely and finally illuminated the winged goddess between them, arms lifted and opaque eyes reflecting the awful heat and anger of the fire she had conjured.

Which promptly (2:23) disappeared, leaving only the blackened earth and burned men as proof it had been there at all.

The humans that weren't screaming in pain were silent and still as death while the tall, thin woman landed delicately and folded her dark wings to her back, sweeping her soulless gaze across the masses, face expressionless.

"I am Star." She stated, though most of them already knew or had guessed her identity by then, and her hard but quiet voice carried to all of them. "I have lent my abilities to support your cause. A cause which this man," she gestured to T'reth, who had just managed to gain his feet, "is both willing and capable of leading forth to victory. Were it not so, I would not be here. Were it to become not so, you may be assured that I would properly deal with him myself. Until he fails this cause, he falls under my protection along with all others who faithfully support it with him. You of the mutinous faction would be wise to remember this." She turned to T'reth. "I leave you to judge your own people."

His injuries were not as severe as they would have been, but he was still injured. It would heal, it shouldn't have bothered her, but she proceeded to surprise both him and herself by reaching out in the middle of his "Thank you," to cup his chin in one hand, and for the first time in a very long time, she healed a mortal.

T'reth blinked, mouth snapping closed, and he reached up to feel for the missing damage, massaging his tingling jaw, while Star quickly withdrew and ruffled her feathers, unnerved by her own actions. He met her eerie gaze again, and somehow he was suddenly less afraid of it.

"Thank you." He repeated, softer this time.

She turned without a word to touch a slightly amazed Ackala, healing him as well, before taking flight and disappearing into the night again.

T'reth and Ackala shared a look.

"Wow." The larger man breathed. "That was… incredible. Did you know she could do that?"

T'reth shook his head mutely, and then turned as Gree drug a pasty-white Liman up to him. He wondered at the goddess' strange behavior, but then shook the thoughts away. He had a mutiny to wrap up at the moment. He would have to ponder later.


	7. Winter

A/N: almost got away without a note, but then I remembered that I had to mention the music. Another Defiance track, the whole soundtrack is actually really good for getting a feel of the story/era. Inception's really good for getting a feel for how Star was during the time, especially Old Souls. And when I say that, yes I do mean the whole soundtrack. Dream is Collapsing included. (Actually, that's going to be the next chapter. Mwahaha.)

In any case, digression aside, this chapter is derived from the track Winter in the Defiance soundtrack. Almost everything about it was spawned from that song. No music cues, it's just the feel of it. Makes for good background music.

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><p>Winter came in with a chill that was unnatural for the southern country. Star's warning to brace for such a thing meant that they were more prepared than they would have been, and the steady supply of game they managed to find meant that they were rarely lacking in food or warm blankets. The cold wind brought with it snow, a phenomenon almost unheard of down in the plains, but the children loved it and it made the Royalist forces halt most of their efforts to hunt the rebel soldiers down. If rumor was to be believed, the snow had hit the Royalist food supply exceptionally hard, bogging down wagon routes, breaking storehouse roofs, chasing away the game and destroying most of the winter crops. They had over five inches on the ground at this point, but the northern folk had known how to get around that and sled construction had been an excellent way to keep the troops busy.<p>

It seemed luck was finally on their side, but T'reth had his doubts that luck was involved very much, if at all.

Planning battle strategies and sending envoys to the farming communities in search of recruits had been their main focus for the winter months, and despite the lack of fighting those endeavors had kept them quite busy. Things were looking up as support for the movement began to pick up speed once more, and they hadn't had more than a rumble of discontent from the men since the mutiny right at the end of summer led by Liman—who, as it turned out, had been paid off by the Royalists to spy on them and cause trouble.

The revelation of T'reth's heritage had caused plenty of trouble on its own, that was for certain. Several of his officers had walked out on him for it, but a lot of them hadn't, despite his worries that they would. He had been attacked by would-be assassins twice in the month afterward; the first had been brutally taken care of by Ackala, his ever-faithful bodyguard. The second incident had been a bit more public, and Star had taken the opportunity to once again defend him and voice her continued support of his leadership. Since then, things had almost gone back to normal. If he discounted the heightened suspicions and wary looks he seemed to be getting a lot of now…

Star's feathers had bleached completely white when the snow had come. Coupled with her already pale skin, barely colored clothes and white hair, the Goddess was like a wraith among the snow covered fields. The snow had seemed to bring a change in her attitude as well, and it seemed T'reth would notice her on the ground and near the camp more often than he used to. Rarely within the camp when it wasn't necessary, but watching from the washed-out fields beyond, or simply standing out there and staring off at some distant point he probably wouldn't see even if it was within his view.

He had just returned with an envoy from one of the furthest communities they were recruiting from when he noticed her standing out there again, alone in the pristinely white field as always. He excused himself from his group after a moment of debate and dared to set out toward the Goddess, telling Ackala to stay in the camp when he tried to follow. His friend gave him a warning look and an admonition to be careful, but left it at that. The larger man wasn't very trusting of things he didn't understand, but apparently Star's actions had convinced him that she was at least not a threat to T'reth's health. T'reth thought that was a good thing.

He halted a few steps away from the immortal, careful to be very respectful of her personal space, not sure what it was he wanted to say now that he was out here. Star barely twitched to acknowledge him, and yet he knew that he had been acknowledged and that she was waiting for him to speak, seeing as he had been the one to initiate contact.

"Thank you." Was what he finally worked up the gumption to say.

The immortal's wings twitched minutely. "You are welcome."

He nodded, even though she still wasn't looking at him, and cast a glance around at the empty field, searching for something else to say. He didn't really know why he felt the urge to make idle conversation with the Goddess—he supposed it came down to simple curiosity and a sense of pride that balked at the thought of walking away after that pitifully short exchange. Still, what could he talk about with her other than something to do with the war? Would she even harbor a conversation about anything else?

Star shifted her wings again, lifting her gaze to the sky and the thin veil of clouds that hovered there, almost as white as the fields below.

"You do not like clouds, do you T'reth?" she murmured, he would have thought to herself, except that it was clearly framed as a question addressed to him.

"I… don't, really, unless they're being useful." He admitted.

"It rarely ever rained in Havenfield unless you were sick, didn't it."

T'reth frowned as he thought back to his childhood. "I never made that connection, but… it did seem to rain every time I was ill, yes."

The immortal nodded. "The clouds have been fighting me. They do not enjoy denying you your birthright."

She turned, slowly and calmly, to meet his confused gaze, until he remembered the one question he always forgot to ask when he spoke to her.

Sun Clan. They were bedtime stories and campfire legends; that was what he had been told when he asked around about the term. Tales told to children of an ancient race of people that had been born out of sunlight and had a range of mystical abilities tied to that foundation. This was probably the first time she'd referred to him by name without adding on that unfamiliar title. He was trying to frame his question properly when she saved him from having to do so.

"They are more than legends, T'reth. They are a heritage and a people lost to time—your heritage and people. You hold in you the unlocked potential of a full-blood member." She cocked her head slightly. "And yet you retain a mere fraction of true blood. You stand almost entirely unrealized, and yet the clouds contest my authority. Why would that be?"

He couldn't tell if she was asking an idle question or accusing him of interfering with her attempts to assist them, and that made him hesitate to answer—if she even wanted him to in the first place. He wasn't sure if the question was even rhetorical or not. By Lykotus, he was such a mess when he tried to talk to her. Where did his diplomacy always run off to when she was standing in front of him, staring him down with the full weight of her timeless existence?

"I wasn't aware that I could do that, ma'am. I don't mean to cause you trouble. I would stop… if I knew how."

The Goddess only stared at him for a long moment. "Your longing for sunlight is subconscious and woven deep into your psyche. It would take much training before you could control it with any ease. We both have more pressing matters to attend to." She seemed to hesitate. "At least for the time being." She added quietly.

T'reth fought down the almost giddy grin that wanted to spread over his face, and chose not to comment. She seemed reluctant as it was. He didn't want to push even that small offer too far.

"Thank you."

She merely blinked at him and turned away to ghost across the powdery snow, as quiet as a breath of air. She didn't get far before the urge to question her on a different matter became too powerful to resist.

"I think it was less than a week before the first snowfall when Gree told me how much he missed northern winters." He mentioned almost casually, and the immortal paused, wings half spread and hand lifted in the process of summoning a wind, glancing back over her shoulder. He peered at her curiously. "He specified five inches as the best for sledding and playing in. You wouldn't have happened to overhear that, would you?"

Instead of answering she turned back to her takeoff, and with the rush of a cold wind on his face she was gone as silently as a snowy owl. T'reth fruitlessly searched the sky for a moment before heading back to camp, smiling a tiny bit as he wondered when the immortal's eyes had begun to form pupils and irises, and how long she planned to cling to the pretense that she didn't care about them even a little bit when every power of perception he had pointed to the fact that she did.


	8. Rage

The battle had been pitched for over three hours before T'reth really started to worry. His men had fought valiantly and held out longer than they'd ever had to before, and he was proud of them, but at the same time, of all the battles they'd fought, they'd never struggled to eke out a victory for this long without some sort of intervention from Star. In his gut he could feel that something was very wrong, for the immortal to have not shown her support yet, but he had no method of contacting her to find out what had happened other than to think to her…and even now, almost a year after his first contact with the immortal, he still had no idea how often that actually worked.

Right now it didn't appear to be working at all.

"T'reth! We've lost the northern line, the Royalists are advancing!" Ackala's voice was almost lost beneath the clamor of battle, but long familiarity made the words comprehensible despite the distractions. His friend was beside him the next moment, fighting off the Royalist soldiers with a fury T'reth could never match. "Gree, Tiktuk, and Marcel report mages on all fronts and a sorcerer leading on the north. We're not going to hold out much longer!"

Unspoken was the question racing through T'reth's mind with increasing frequency. "I'm working on that." He told the larger man. Ackala gave him a sharp look and lunged at a Royalist coming up behind him. For a moment afterward their vicinity was clear of enemies and Ackala turned to grab his commander's arm.

"People are dying, T'reth, bystanders and soldiers alike. If we lose this battle, we won't have much to pick up afterwards. We need her here _now._"

"You think I don't realize that?" T'reth retorted, grimacing at the reminder of how bad this situation was becoming. "I can't make her be somewhere when I want her there, Ackala, I can only ask. And I have been. I don't know why she's not…"

The wind shifted so abruptly it was unmistakable, throwing dust and smoke into T'reths' face and cutting off his sentence. A rumble of thunder above their heads came from clouds far too thin to produce such a loud noise, but when they looked up they saw that the thin cloud cover they'd had all day was suddenly becoming darker and thicker at an impossible rate, seeming to loom down at them as if it wanted to smother the entire landscape and everything on it. The wind shifted again, swirling in visible eddies all around the city they were fighting in, catching the numerous plumes of smoke in its grasp and pulling them towards each other in ways that were anything but natural. T'reth felt his gut lurch sickeningly at the sight as that feeling that something was terribly wrong twisted deeper into him, even as Ackala let out a shout of victory.

"Let's see how they like us now!" his friend exclaimed.

The smoke was being sucked toward the sky, forming a massive column of roiling darkness. The clouds swirled in tandem, reaching down to complete the column, and then beginning to give the thing a form that was both familiar and incredibly foreign to T'reth. He knew what it was supposed to be; it was obvious who was causing the phenomenon, and yet… the figure of shadow was nothing like the Star he had come to somewhat know and understand. This wasn't the creature of light who brought snow because a homesick northerner had made an off-hand comment about it. This wasn't the stranger in their camp that showed the magically inclined children how to make a fire and put it out with only words. This wasn't the source of knowledge and wisdom that had shown him how to light up a dark room with the radiance of the sun, who had told him stories of a civilization he was descended from with an enrapturing attention to detail. This wasn't even the Goddess he had met in a green field a year ago, demanding that he speak his heart and not waste her time with foolish rhetoric.

(Dream is Collapsing) This was the Demon that the Goddess had always had the potential to become if she was pushed, and T'reth remembered suddenly why most of his soldiers avoided her at all costs.

Ackala fell silent as they watched the smoke and cloud being continue to form somewhere near the middle of the city, and then reach out to one of the fires. There was an ignition within the swelling darkness and with a roar and crackle the whole sky began to burn, red and yellow and black churning above them as if the very forces of Hell had come to join their war. T'reth turned to his friend and found Ackala with both hands balled into fists and pressed against his head, jaw clenched and face pinched in pain.

"Get everyone out of the city, back to camp!" T'reth ordered, shaking the larger man to be sure he had his attention.

"She's going to kill us all!" Ackala yelled back, unable to hear himself over the ringing in his head.

"Yes! Evacuate back to camp! GO!"

They split up, sprinting different ways to spread the order among as many people as possible.

The shadow looming over all of creation began to move, reaching out with flaming claws to set fire to everything not already ablaze. A beam of blue shot up from the north and lightning struck back in her anger, thunder roaring as she turned toward her assailant with untamable fury. Beams of ice exploded at the enormous form in rapid succession as the sorcerer defended himself, each burst of blue more desperate than the last as the creature failed to dissipate or even slow her advance. A few seconds later she reached out and the beams faltered, and then stopped altogether.

The fiery shadow continued her advance unhindered.

T'reth darted among burning buildings, dodging frightened horses and other animals and catching anybody he could, telling them to retreat to the southeast, where the camp was. Half the people he told he couldn't tell if they were his soldiers or townsfolk, but he didn't care. Star wasn't stopping for any of them, and Royalist or Rebel supporter, no civilian deserved to be caught in the middle of this.

The whole city had to be on fire at this point, the heat and smoke so heavy that his lungs and throat and eyes were burning as he raced through the chaos, trying to think of a way to stop this. What could he possibly do, though? Even if he knew how to do more than glow with the power that was his birthright, he couldn't stand up to this. But then again, maybe he didn't need to match her power to stop her.

He stumbled to the outskirts of the city entirely by chance with no idea of which side of the city he was on, coughing harshly to clear his lungs. The smoke was still thick and the sky was still a blanket of flaming wrath, giving him very little sense of direction, but as the shadow began to move out of the city with a purpose to her inexorable advance he was pretty sure he knew which direction she would be going, and he knew with just as much surety that if Star was allowed to continue like this, there would be very little left of their country to rebuild once she was done. He had to stop her, or at the very least try his best. The only way he could think of to do that was to get over there and get in her way, and that meant that he needed a horse.

The horse liked his idea even less than he did, but he managed to convince it that running alongside and far in front of the fiery form wasn't as bad as it could have been, and within a few minutes he was jumping off and letting the poor animal run away. The shadow drifted closer, seeming to absorb everything in her path, and then changed course just slightly to avoid him. That was when he knew that he could do this. He had the power to stop her; he just had to get close enough to force it.

He felt like his lungs were going to start on fire as he ran toward the flaming creature, but he forced himself to move forward and push through the heat and smoke and pain, knowing that he was the only one who could and would dare to bring her back to herself. That conviction was the only thing that carried him into the maelstrom of fire and smoke before him.

Almost instantly he couldn't breathe. He could feel his skin and clothes burning as he collapsed, heart racing out of control, mind clouded with the fear that he wasn't going to make it out of here alive, and at the same time throwing the thought at this Demon that she needed to stop, that she _didn't have to do this_. Telling her, purely on a whim brought to him by his failing mind as he hovered on the edge of consciousness, that it was okay to feel. That she didn't have to cut herself off like this. That she didn't have to be alone this way.

The darkness took him then. He never saw the fiery shadow pause and stand still for an endless minute, the fire within the darkness flickering, and he didn't see the smoke and debris and cloud dissipate when the wind tunnel holding it all together abruptly died away. What he saw when he woke up was Star, kneeling beside him with one hand on his chest and the other on his forehead. The last of the heat and pain left his body as he took his first few conscious breaths, relaxing in relief until he felt her hand wrap around his throat and haul him off the ground, leaving his feet dangling several inches above it.

_Never do that again._ The words lashed into his mind with a compulsion to obey them, but he fought it. Her face was inches from his, silvery eyes wreathed with fire and burning into his very soul, it seemed.

_EVER._

The order clamped around his mind like a vice that he couldn't escape, and when he could think again he found himself on his hands and knees, gasping for breath. Star was walking away, black wings lifted for takeoff.

"Only if you don't." he rasped out.

He might as well have put a wall in her path, she stopped so quickly. When she slowly turned back after a moment, there was a hint of uncertainty behind her hard mask. "What…did you say?"

"Only if you don't." he repeated, swallowing some of the rasp and starting to straighten. The immortal took a faltering step back, blinking, and then he started to feel it, too; an odd vibration in the air. When he glanced down, his hands were glowing with a golden light and he flexed them in confusion. He wasn't concentrating on making them do that at all, why…

He looked up to Star for an explanation only to watch her stumble away from him, face twisted in fear.

"What are you doing?" she demanded, holding up an arm as if to ward off a physical attack. "No. You can't. It's not possible! Stop!"

"I don't—" He started, and then lurched to his feet when she collapsed. "Star!" He hurried over and reached down to shake her shoulder, but the instant he touched her golden light exploded between them, blinding him for a moment and filling the air with words that he knew in his heart, even though he didn't understand them in his mind. A surge of energy left him as he fell back in shock, and unconsciousness hovered on the edge of his mind again.

_What have you done?_ Were the words that whispered into his head a moment before the darkness won him over again and he was lost to the world.

~0~

"T'reth? T'reth, can you hear me? I think he's coming around."

T'reth groaned as Ackala's voice sent a throb of pain through his head. It felt like his brain was trying to escape its prison in his skull, and he almost wished it would so that it would stop hurting. Another voice joined his friend's.

"T'reth? Hold still a moment, sir."

He winced at a particularly intense stab of pain, and then sighed in relief as it ebbed away at their lead healer's touch. He opened his eyes slowly, surprised that it took him as long as it did to get used to the lamplight in the healer's tent.

"Better?" Middan asked once the commander had focused on him, and T'reth nodded slowly.

"Thank you." He murmured quietly, still trying to tread gingerly around his own head as the throbbing ache hovered around the edges of his mind, waiting for an excuse to flare up again.

"What happened? We found you on the north side of the city, passed out at the end of the burn path." Ackala told him, watching his face intently. "We thought you were dead."

T'reth glanced down at his hands. They weren't glowing anymore. "I…don't really know what happened." He admitted.

"Then you had better figure it out." A voice hissed from across the tent. All three men started and turned to see Star slipping out of a dark corner, silver eyes glowing a dangerous white. Ackala drew his swords, confirming the source of the tension T'reth could hear in his voice.

"Stay back, Demon." The large man threatened, but quietly, acknowledging the fact that he was defenseless if the Goddess decided to ignore him.

Star glared at the mortal challenging her, growling deeply before spitting a harsh word at him that nobody understood.

T'reth lurched up in alarm to grab his friend. "Don't-!"

Golden light crackled in the air around them, fending off the invisible attack as easily as Star had fended off the sorcerer's back in the flaming city. Middan jumped back in surprise, shielding his face from the sparking light.

"What in Rauruk's name was that?" the healer breathed into the stunned silence afterward.

"Something that should not be." The Goddess stated coldly, terrifying gaze still locked onto T'reth.

The air in the tent had a dangerous feel to it, and T'reth knew he had to tread carefully here. Still… "Star, I don't know what happened, I don't know what it is." He told her, almost pleading. "How can I fix it or undo it or whatever I need to do if I don't know what it is?"

The Goddess' gaze narrowed to an angry glare. "It is a form of oath-bond. Figure it out." She ordered scathingly, and then in the blink of an eye melted into the shadows of the tent and was gone.

There was a moment of wary silence, and then T'reth slowly moved to lay back down, suddenly exhausted again and with his headache making a steady return.

"What's an oath-bond?" Ackala wondered.

T'reth grimaced and shook his head. "I don't know."


	9. Oath-Bond

It's been _ages_, but here's a little update! : ) The next one will be short, too, I think...

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><p>The wind had been stirring in fits and bursts for the last two days, sweeping up clouds of dust and spinning dirt devils between tents as they flapped and shook in the gusts. A shadow rested almost palpably over the camp as clouds spiraled above them, centering on the top of the hill they were stationed near the foot of. They threatened rain with their darkness, but none had fallen. An ominous rumble echoed among the adjacent foothills as T'reth shielded his eyes against the flying dirt, peering up at where the crest of the hill disappeared into the haze of clouds.<p>

"Nobody's seen her?" he asked Ackala.

"Not since she was in the healer's tent." The larger man grunted, shifting as a gust of wind pushed against him, hand resting on the hilt of his sword out of nervous habit.

T'reth glanced at him. "Have you been buzzing?"

Ackala shrugged, irritation crossing his face. "On and off. Never very strongly."

Another burst of wind and distant rumble moved through the camp. Not very many people were out and about today, peering out of tents and makeshift shelters at the brooding sky with fear in their eyes and prayers on their lips. Not many understood the cause of the angry weather, but they all knew a great power was stirring at the top of the hill, and that until it was appeased, it was best to stay huddled under shelter with their families.

T'reth nodded, settling his pack a little more securely on his back. He made to take a step toward the forest beyond their clearing and Ackala held out an arm to stop him.

"T'reth, let me come with you." His friend pleaded. "It's not safe. What if she kills you?"

A grin flashed across T'reth's face. "Well, there won't be much you can do about that either way, will there?"

Ackala frowned. "You still don't even know what she's angry about. This is foolish!"

The commander shook his head with a sigh. "We asked everybody in the camp, Ackala. _Nobody_ knows what exactly an oath-bond is. The odds of me figuring it out any time soon are next to zero. If she wants this thing fixed, she's just going to have to help me fix it. If she hasn't figured that out already—and I'm sure she has—then I'll tell her and we'll sort it out." He patted his bodyguard's shoulder. "I'll be fine on my own."

Ackala crossed his arms, frowning deeply, but eventually nodded. T'reth smiled and then turned to start his journey up the hill.

The wind blustered at him the whole way up. It took him a good hour to reach the top, not because it was a particularly tall or challenging hill to climb, but because he was still unusually weak from… whatever it was that had happened between him and Star. He would have done this two days ago, but he had hardly been able to get out of bed until yesterday. His strength was returning swiftly now, but it was still a struggle. It was no coincidence that he had failed to tell his friend and bodyguard as much before he left.

The mist of cloud felt good on his skin as he passed into the grey haze, and only a few minutes later he was at the tallest point of the hill. The cloud was thick here, though, and he could barely make out the trees fifteen feet in front of him, and nowhere he looked could he see Star. He set his pack down, taking a drink from his water skin and catching his breath. After a minute had passed and Star had still not revealed herself, he decided to start off the conversation.

"I beg your forgiveness, Great One, for my unwitting trespass against you," he said formally to the trees. "I would do all in my power to right this wrong, if I but knew how. Teach me how, Star, if it can be done."

The mist swirled around him, thickening even more, and thunder grumbled, standing his hair up on end.

"Oath-bonds don't just _happen_, mortal." Star informed him coldly, her voice shifting among the dark trees as if they were the ones speaking. "They do not form between unwilling participants, and certainly not when one of them is _ignorant_."

He flinched as a sharp gust of wind swept through the forest, stirring the mist without dissipating it. "Star, please—" he started, but was cut off when another, stronger gust threw leaves and dirt into his face. "Great One," he corrected himself, shielding his eyes from the onslaught. "you know I speak truly when I say I don't understand. It's hardly fair to hold me accountable…"

"_SILENCE_." The trees hissed viciously, and for the first time T'reth had to counter the urge to cower a bit. "_I won't hear your excuses, boy._"

Thunder rumbled around him, the trees shaking in a wind that didn't quite reach down to where he sat, and then there was silence for a long moment on the hill while he waited for the goddess to speak, not daring to open his mouth until he was addressed. That didn't stop him from thinking out what she'd said, though, and only becoming more confused as he did.

"You question my judgement, mortal?" Her voice condensed, drawing in with the cloud to form a shadowy figure hovering in the air before him. T'reth flinched. It really wasn't fair, not being safe to think thoughts in his own head.

"Correct me if my logic is flawed, Great One," he started humbly. "But if this Oath-Bond can't be formed between unwilling or ignorant participants, which we are, then how could it be one? Are you certain it isn't something similar?"

"I have tested it by every means available and it has withstood, unaltered and unbroken. It is an oath-bond, albeit an unusual form of such."

T'reth waited a moment for her to go on, and when she didn't, he dared to voice the important question. "Can it be broken?"

"All Oath-Bonds can." The goddess murmured, the shadow form dissolving back into shifting mist and her voice sliding among the trees almost sinisterly. "_This bond was formed with no release clause, and thus the default cessation is the death of one of the participants."_

The cloud swirled around him, gathering thick and cold, phasing out what little light there had been before. The man shivered, trying to breathe evenly as his heart rate increased. He was afraid, but he knew he had to fix this if the rebels would ever have a chance at overthrowing the Royalists. So he steeled himself, taking a deep breath, and spoke.

"If that is the price you would exact for my trespass, then I would accept it, on the condition that you continue to aid my brothers in their quest for freedom."

The temperature dropped several degrees, making him shiver again and revealing his rapid breaths as clouds of condensation.

"I would accept your condition," Star murmured softly from somewhere behind him, making him start and quell the urge to face her. He flinched away from an icy touch on the back of his neck, bracing himself, wondering if Ackala's inner ear was ringing, if he was rushing to follow his friend up the hill, hoping he wouldn't be close enough to see, hoping there wouldn't be a frozen corpse that his spirit brother would have to bury later…

The touch receded. The temperature rose. The mist dissipated somewhat. The light returned. T'reth blinked in surprise and relief, daring to glance around.

"Fortunately for you, my Oath to assist your cause and protect you as long as you are true to it predates this Oath, and such an agreement is not an option at the moment." A shadowy mist form wafted out beside him, drifting toward the trees. "Rest assured that it is the only reason you live, mortal, and as soon as the protection of the previous Oath is rescinded," the form turned to look over her shoulder at him, pearly eyes a vivid white in the grey. "I will not hesitate to end this one."

T'reth bowed his head. "Understood, Great One." He murmured. In his head, a thought crossed his mind in distinct words.

_I'm just going to have to be careful then, aren't I._

He froze, feeling the goddess' gaze upon him. A long moment of silence passed on the top of the hill.

_Indeed, boy. You will._

A wind sprang up, pushing against him and finally clearing out the cloud a bit, just enough for him to see beyond the nearest trees. By the time he looked again, Star was gone, and it was over. He took a moment to gather himself, breathing deeply to calm his shaking, and then started on his journey back down the hill.


	10. Forgiveness

Like I said, we write like demons when we get together. : )

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><p>Ackala had been surprisingly calm when he returned, and seemed suspicious and confused when his friend cautiously asked if he had been buzzing at all while the commander had been on the hill. The answer had been "Only a bit, for a second. Why?"<p>

T'reth couldn't reconcile it. Eventually, he concluded that the protection of the first Oath was strong enough that he never truly had been in danger. He would like to think that Star hadn't truly intended to kill him in the first place, but… he had to admit it was a bit of a stretch. Her attitude as time passed only seemed to confirm that diagnosis.

She used to walk through the camp, to hover just in sight beyond, to speak to any brave enough to approach her and entertain the children when no adult who cared to stop her was looking. She used to show up at random points in the weeks to tell T'reth stories and teach him; how to fight, how to use the power of his ancestry, how to lead an army. She used to sit in regularly for officer's meetings. Now, it was almost as if she didn't exist unless she had something to say. And when she did have something to say, she didn't speak to them, she spoke at them and refused to hear any concerns or questions, only staying long enough to deliver her message and then gone again in the next breath.

She used to look almost normal. Before, she looked strange for certain, but not like this. Now she was dark, something that melted in and out of shadows like a demon, clawed and malevolent and eager to deal death to anyone or thing in her way. Long nights under her tutelage made T'reth want to believe that she would eventually forgive, that she would respond to his humble acquiescence and come around to be truly on their side again, rather than a slave bound by a promise she had made to someone in need, but that belief was slowly corroded away with the passage of time.

Weeks turned into months. Months turned into one year, and then two. Their movement was gaining speed, drawing people to it daily as the impoverished slaves realized that there was the possibility of being something more than what they were, the chance at a better life, a hope of freedom. The Royalists pushed back, of course, but were forced to retreat every time their Oath-Bound demon appeared on the battlefield—or more often didn't, her attention and assistance visible in gaping chasms that opened where none had been before, trees that writhed to life and fought with them, fire that sprang up between the clashing forces and smothered the land with thick, choking smoke, rivers that departed from their banks to churn the earth into beds of hungry quicksand, shadows and darkness that reached out and stole lives away like snuffing out candles.

To be sure, it scared the Royalists, but it scared the rebels, too. It took everything T'reth knew and had been taught—both in his former life as a Royalist and by the demon he'd once known as a goddess—to assure them that she wouldn't turn on them, that they could trust her to help.

They made incredible progress in those two years, but Star only became darker, more shadow than anything else as the conflict went on. A slave, he kept thinking. A slave to her word. A slave to him, in many ways, and it kept him up many nights with guilt, his mind running circles trying to figure a way out of this situation. No solution came to him, try as he might.

In the end, it was desperation that drove him out of camp on the eve of the second anniversary of the day she'd promised his demise the instant she was capable. He didn't see her, but he hoped his words were heard as he poured out his heart to the darkness, leaving behind the language of his political upbringing that served him so well in inspiring his men because he knew that only irritated her, when there was inconsistency between the words coming out of your mouth and what was in your heart.

He tried to stop himself when he realized he was only rambling, but it was somewhat cathartic for him, to ramble through the problem and his inability to fix it. He hoped saying it out loud would make the answer clearer, bring him some epiphany simply through getting it out of his head and running it past the person on the other end of this situation, silent though she may be, but it didn't. He fell silent when he finally ran out of words to describe what he felt was happening, and he sat in silence, alone in the woods, beyond even his sentries' positions in the darkness of a moonless night, until the cold reached him and he decided he wasn't getting any epiphany tonight, or even an answer from the being he thought he was talking to, and he got up and wandered his way back to his tent before dropping into his bed and passing out.

The war, for it was a war now and not just a rebellion, moved on as it had for the last two years.

It was a good two or three months before T'reth finally saw any repercussions of that night in the woods, and when they finally did come they were in the form of a child. A child that skipped up to him as he was chopping wood, and offered him a large white feather, and told him that the bright lady in the woods had asked him to give it to T'reth. He had never imagined to find an object that could be hope incarnate, but as he stroked that feather and thanked the young boy, he knew that he had found it.

A month later he heard the children telling stories of the bright lady in the forest that spoke to the trees and made the wind dance. A month after that, he saw her outside the camp, a lone sentry standing guard in a meadow blanketed by snow. A perfect five inches of snow, in fact. He wasn't brave enough that day to approach her as he had over three years ago, but when he saw her at least once a week for the next three, he decided he might be brave enough now.

Ackala jogged up next to him as he marched across camp toward the pale, wraith-like form almost lost in the surrounding whiteness. "You're not going out there alone, T'reth." He warned his soul brother, eying the shorter man sternly.

T'reth squared his shoulders, nodding. "It's best if I do, you know that. You two have never really gotten along well."

His bodyguard stepped in his way, halting him with a hand on his shoulder. "You two _used_ to get along, but that's not how it is now, T'reth. She doesn't get along with anyone anymore."

"Except the children, it seems." He shot back.

They stood and stared at each other, entire conversations passing between them in pure body language before Ackala stepped back with a sigh.

"Fine. But I'm staying right here and watching." He grumbled unhappily, folding his arms over his chest and keeping to his word, eyes sharp as a hawk as his friend made his way across the snowy meadow.

T'reth spent the short trip calming his nerves and deciding on what he was going to say when he did reach the goddess, and had just settle on a simple 'thank you' and then a 'how are you' when he came within speaking distance. Before he could more than open his mouth, though, the wispy figure turned to him.

Her skin was still pale, but not nearly as it had been before the accidental Oath-Bond. Her hair was still bleached white, but her ears were less pointed. Her wings were a pure white as well, and the sun seemed to shimmer down the feathers like a liquid. She was bright, seeming almost to glow in the moment of sun peeking through the winter clouds. What stopped him short, though, was her eyes.

They were blue. A pale, icy blue, but they were blue, with fully formed iris' and pupils, and if it weren't for the wings she could have been human. He was still trying to reclaim his wits when she did something he had never seen her do before, leaving him speechless again; she smiled.

The next moment she was gone, and as fleeting as the moment and as small as the expression had been, it had still happened.

The next day she showed up at the officer's meeting and sat at the far end of the table. She didn't seem to have anything to say, but she listened and watched. The men weren't as open with him as they had been before, but T'reth kept the meeting on track and hoped they would get used to her again with time. She was gone before he dismissed the meeting, dashing his hopes of actually talking to her, but he was sure she would speak to him eventually, maybe even explain her sudden change in attitude…

Until then, he was glad to have the goddess back in place of the demon.

~0~

It was another month and a half before he finally got to have the conversation he was sure they still needed to have, and it came after an officer's meeting. He had dismissed his men, who had indeed begun to open up and forget her imposing presence, at least when she was silent, and the immortal had still been sitting at the end of the table. He had taken his cue and stayed where he was as well, and once the tent had emptied (Ackala threw a suspicious glance back at them and left only at T'reth's nod), the creature turned her blue eyes on him and tilted her head, indicating that he should speak.

He thought through his words for a moment. He had known this would eventually come, and he had thought long about what he wanted to say, but now that it was here the words seemed wrong. And as he always was when faced with the Goddess who saw into his mind and soul, he was left only with the words in his heart.

"I sat across a table from a goddess once." He murmured. "But she was a cold, distant being, untouchable, really."

Star turned her head slightly, but didn't say anything, her gaze sharp on him.

"I sat across from a demon, once, too, and she was as untouchable and angry as a flame, but I don't think you're either of those, ma'am. What happened to her?" he wondered.

She sat back slightly, observing him, and tucked her wings in. "She found herself in a position she did not like and could not escape and reacted with the violence of a child, a reaction unbefitting of her age and understanding. She refused, for a time, to acknowledge that, but then a mortal came to her." Her gaze seemed to pierce into his soul, seeing everything that he was, and for once he didn't shy away from that. "A Child of the Sun." she whispered. "A boy she had threatened to destroy at the first opportunity, came to her alone and guileless, and spoke to her as if to a friend. But she was no such thing, and hadn't been to anyone for a very long while and hadn't much cared to be for even longer."

Her gaze softened then, and dropped to the map on the table between them. "He made her think that she might like to be again, though." She admitted quietly. "So she decided to change, and she accepted the facts of her situation and when she paused to look again she realized a few things." Her icy blue eyes lifted to meet his again. "Your logic was not flawed, T'reth. Oath-Bonds do not form between unwilling and ignorant participants, and yet one was formed. By definition, we were thus neither. Some part of me accepted that oath. And some part of you knew how to make it." She waved a hand casually and above the table an image formed from golden light, taking the shape of a symbol almost familiar to him, too bright to look directly at and leaving sunspots on T'reth's eyes. "I thought I understood what you were, Child of the Sun, but I only saw the surface and not the depths. You are no ordinary descendant of the sun people. You are a Sha'ran."

T'reth's eyes widened as stories told in years gone by of the Sha'ran and their power and leadership bubbled up in his memory. "Me?" he breathed. "How? Sha'ran are—"

"Touched at birth by the sun god himself, yes. Only detectable by their concentration of power and when you know what to look for. I simply did not care to look." She waved her hand and the mark of the Sha'ran disappeared. "Your training will be adjusted to reflect that status."

T'reth frowned in thought, blinking the mark from his vision. "I don't see how that explains how I knew to form an Oath-Bond, though."

"Sha'ran share a special link to the source of their power. Sha'Ra is familiar with my dealings. It was through him that the Oath was formed."

The man nodded and hesitated before voicing his next question. "And still unbreakable?"

"By anything other than your death, yes." The goddess confirmed, but her mood didn't seem to change at all by the admission, and the temperature and lighting conditions were unaltered as well.

T'reth ducked his head anyway. "I still express my apologies for that, Great One."

"Your apology does not change the facts. We have more important matters to attend to. Your training is barely begun, after all."

The mortal smiled. "I look forward to it, then."

Star rose from her seat. "Good." With a lazy gesture, the table lifted from the ground and tipped itself on end against one side of the tent, out of the way, and the chairs followed suite while T'reth just stared. "We have some time to make up. On your feet, boy."

He lurched out of his unmoved chair, allowing it to join its fellows, and listened closely as his teacher spoke, thinking all the while that he was going to like this new Star quite a bit.


	11. Animosity

AN: Hey. Long time no see. Now for the promised He-Who-Has-Not-Been-Named chapter! (Can anyone say unreliable narrator?)

Set to the song Paradox from the Inception soundtrack.

* * *

><p>Her laughter was how he knew she still belonged to him. Not because she did it all the time—quite the opposite. She never laughed anymore, and that fact, that knowledge that he was the only creature who had ever been able to make her laugh like that, was something he cherished jealously. That was what kept him going; because no matter what happened, no matter where she went or how completely she ignored his existence, he could always tell himself that he was the only one who had ever won her heart, the only one she had ever held and kissed and laughed so freely with. He was the only creature she had ever loved.<p>

(Paradox) But he had misjudged her—and himself. He was older; he saw further afield than her, knew more, understood her purpose and their creators far more completely than she did. He thought he could show her the truth of that, but he had acted too soon, and she had refused him. He had never been refused before. In retrospect, his reaction had been... rash. He had let his anger get the better of him, let it reach out and burn her, and at the time, seeing her on the floor with the marks of his rage scarring her perfect skin a brilliant red, something had told him that she would not recover. Something dark and insidious whispered to him that he had killed her.

He had brushed the thoughts aside, though. She was like him—physical injuries didn't stick. She would be fine. But he had been shaken nonetheless, directionless and restless. He had left her there. When he returned not long after, she should have been better...but she wasn't. The burns were like new, and her energy, her very soul, was twisted into dysfunctional knots, oblivious to anything beyond herself.

Her mortal friend had stood between them, yelled at him for his transgression, and kept him away. She had been terrified, he could hear the truth in her mind, of what he might do to her for it, and she was right to be so. He had obliterated mortals for less, but her actions had troubled him. She thought the love of his life needed protecting. From him.

Did she? He had wondered as he looked past the raging mortal. He'd heard that seed of darkness in his mind again, telling him she was dead. He left without a word or second glance at the insolent mortal, and he didn't come back for a long time, thinking that would heal the burn and the rift between them. He still loved her. Surely she understood that? Surely she would welcome him back?

That had been his expectation, three Ages ago. He supposed he had been...wrong, in a way. To think that she would come back to him on her own. She was still too young to recognize the inescapable reality of what she was.

Now he stood on a barren, blackened landscape overshadowed by a solid cloud of ash that stretched to the horizons. There had been a city here, but then it had become a battlefield, and now... there was nothing but death, and ash, and burnt matter. It was a despondent scene, but it matched his mood—the mood he always seemed to be in, ever since she'd left him. Ever since she wouldn't come back.

She'd been here not too long ago; this was her doing. She'd been berserking. She never used to do that, while she was with him. She had created this hopeless place, this place that would come to be known as Desolate. Did that reflect her mood, too? Couldn't she see how they belonged together, how they made each other happy?

Something had changed in this last battle, though, and he walked away slightly unsettled. A boy—leader of the rebel movement in this country—had stopped her. He had calmed her rage, and brought her back to herself. This was troubling. He decided that he would have to watch this boy closely from now on.

For a short time, he found nothing to worry about. But then something changed. After that, what he saw became increasingly disturbing. He saw that his conjunx endura spent a lot of time with this mortal. He saw that she was growing to care for him, in a way she had not cared for anybody in many ages, and that observation poisoned something deep inside him. He recognized the dislike developing in his mind for this boy, and he tried to stifle it. The human wouldn't be around long enough to cause a real problem, he told himself. He would pass on, and she would remain his.

That perception was altered in less time than it takes an atom to split, in the very instant that the sound of her laughter reached him where he listened and watched. For the first time since they had been torn apart, her laughter danced into his very being, catalyzing his dislike into unadulterated hate for the mortal that had instilled such a reaction from his love.

_T'reth_.

It was degrading to bring himself low enough to have such strong feelings of any sort about such a short-lived and primitive creature as this mortal child, inherited photon manipulation or no. He certainly didn't _want_ to hate the insignificant boy...but he did, and there was no way around it now.

He was going to have to kill T'reth.


End file.
